Arab Bank's AB Asia Dynamic Fund wins Lipper Fund Awards 2009

This is the second consecutive year that the AB Asia Dynamic Fund achieves a Lipper Fund award.

Based on the Lipper Leaders Rating Methodology, the AB Asia Dynamic Fund has achieved a historical total return performance relative to its peers and consistent risk-adjusted returns when compared to similar funds.

The Fund demonstrated a superior ability to preserve capital compared with other funds in the same category and was able to successfully manage and contain expenses at relatively low levels.

The AB Asia Dynamic Fund was established in September 2001 and re-launched in December 2006 with a new mandate that has enabled it to dynamically allocate its underlying investments and adapt rapidly to the changing trends in the Asian markets, with a view to deliver superior returns to investors over a market cycle of around 5 years.

The Fund is managed by Arab Bank Fund Managers (Guernsey) Ltd. - a wholly-owned subsidiary of Arab Bank Plc. and advised by Baring Asset Management Ltd. The Fund has migrated from the British Virgin Islands to be registered, in January 2009, in Guernsey Channel Islands (a unique event in the history of Mutual Funds registered in both Guernsey and the B.V.I.).

Mr. Amin Al Husseini, Country Head of Arab Bank in Bahrain, received the award on behalf of the Bank at the Lipper Fund Awards 2009 ceremony, which took place in Manama on 31st March 2009.

AB Asia Dynamic Fund is part of the large suite of investment funds set up by Arab Bank to meet the investment needs of its clientele, as an integral part of Arab Bank's wealth management operation.

The Funds are located in financial hubs such as Bahrain and Guernsey, where Arab Bank has also listed several funds on the Channel Islands Stock Exchange thereby making them accessible to corporate as well as individual investors.

Arab Bank Group is one of the largest financial organizations in the Middle East and North Africa region. Over around 79 years of operation, it has set a foothold in financial centers all over the globe, offering its services and products though around 500 branches in more than 30 countries across five continents.

Despite the economic downturn globally, the group's 2008 financial statements show it achieved a quality leap in profits, hitting the $1bn mark to reach $1.061bn, compared with $964m posted at the end of 2007, with $97m increase and a growth rate of 10%.

The group's results also indicate there was a rise in assets at the end of last year to $45.6bn, compared with $38.3 at the end of 2007, with a 19% growth. Shareholders equity, meanwhile, increased last year to $7.5bn from $6.8bn in December 2007, with a growth rate of 9.5%.